Hi all
Decided to check out my local gun shop website today in my lunch break only to find that my mobile provider have activated (without asking me) my "adult content blocker".
Under 18s are legally allowed to own and use firearms and shotguns, so why should content relating to legal firearms ownership and sporting shooting be blocked?
The only answer I can come up with is because the writers of the software disagree with shooting and/or have no education around firearms ownership and have simply decided on behalf of the population that under 18s shouldn't be interested in that sort of thing.
I can obviously disable the content filter, but I'm genuinely outraged that legal shooting is lumped in with extremism, drug use and porn as "unsuitable for minors".
I have emailed BASC and will also complain directly to the service provider (Three) as well. Not that I imagine it'll do me any good.
On a side note, clearly the software is woefully ineffective if I can still access this site, which has graphic photos of dead/injured animals, butchery, occasional swearing, etc but can't access a website where the most "offensive" photo is of an air rifle...
EDIT:
Below is an email which I have sent to Three at an address for reporting incorrectly filtered websites
Hi there,
I would like to raise a concern regarding the workings of your adult content filter.
The filter seems to target several websites with content relating to the legal ownership and use of firearms for sporting purposes, pest control, and competition. Clearly this content does not fall within your own description of "violent, gory, sexually explicit or drug-related" and I would be interested to hear the resoning behind Three's corporate decision to block content of this nature from viewing by under-18s.
The minimum age to be granted a firearms certificate ("licence") in the UK is 14. There is NO minimum age for the grant of a shotgun certificate. Legal shooting activities do not promote violence, and in fact potential firearms certificate holders are subject to a strict character referencing, background check and interview process, making us among the most law-abiding and heavily regulated citizens.
Furthermore, the British Association of Shooting and Conservation operates a Young Shots program aimed specifically at promoting the sport of shooting to a younger demographic. I myself first learned the basics of riflemanship in the cadet organisation from the age of 14.
As you can tell, shooting sports and firearms ownership are not restricted to over 18s, either by law or by governing bodies of the various target sports. Please, therefore, give serious consideration to the motives behind blocking such content.
Yours faithfully,
(SimpleSimon)
Decided to check out my local gun shop website today in my lunch break only to find that my mobile provider have activated (without asking me) my "adult content blocker".
Under 18s are legally allowed to own and use firearms and shotguns, so why should content relating to legal firearms ownership and sporting shooting be blocked?
The only answer I can come up with is because the writers of the software disagree with shooting and/or have no education around firearms ownership and have simply decided on behalf of the population that under 18s shouldn't be interested in that sort of thing.
I can obviously disable the content filter, but I'm genuinely outraged that legal shooting is lumped in with extremism, drug use and porn as "unsuitable for minors".
I have emailed BASC and will also complain directly to the service provider (Three) as well. Not that I imagine it'll do me any good.
On a side note, clearly the software is woefully ineffective if I can still access this site, which has graphic photos of dead/injured animals, butchery, occasional swearing, etc but can't access a website where the most "offensive" photo is of an air rifle...
EDIT:
Below is an email which I have sent to Three at an address for reporting incorrectly filtered websites
Hi there,
I would like to raise a concern regarding the workings of your adult content filter.
The filter seems to target several websites with content relating to the legal ownership and use of firearms for sporting purposes, pest control, and competition. Clearly this content does not fall within your own description of "violent, gory, sexually explicit or drug-related" and I would be interested to hear the resoning behind Three's corporate decision to block content of this nature from viewing by under-18s.
The minimum age to be granted a firearms certificate ("licence") in the UK is 14. There is NO minimum age for the grant of a shotgun certificate. Legal shooting activities do not promote violence, and in fact potential firearms certificate holders are subject to a strict character referencing, background check and interview process, making us among the most law-abiding and heavily regulated citizens.
Furthermore, the British Association of Shooting and Conservation operates a Young Shots program aimed specifically at promoting the sport of shooting to a younger demographic. I myself first learned the basics of riflemanship in the cadet organisation from the age of 14.
As you can tell, shooting sports and firearms ownership are not restricted to over 18s, either by law or by governing bodies of the various target sports. Please, therefore, give serious consideration to the motives behind blocking such content.
Yours faithfully,
(SimpleSimon)
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